De La Forest and Lekhara make history, Granada sees new champions: 2024 Year recap

The 2024 World Shooting Para Sport season culminated in the highly anticipated Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, where athletes from around the world showcased their skills on the biggest stage. The Chateauroux Shooting Centre witnessed memorable performances from home star Tanguy De La Forest and India's Avani Lekhara.

De La Forest’s journey at Paris 2024 was nothing short of remarkable. The French athlete made history, clinching two medals and captivating the home crowd with his precision and poise under pressure. He took silver in the R4 mixed 10m air rifle standing SH2, his first Paralympic medal in his sixth Games; and then grabbed his long-awaited gold in the R5 mixed 10m air rifle prone SH2 in front of the crowd shouting his name from the stands.

His gold medal was only the second for a host nation in the Paralympic Games this century, and the first since China at Beijing 2008.

India’s Avani Lekhara also made waves in France. Having already made history as the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Lekhara entered Paris 2024 with the goal of furthering her legacy. And so she did, winning gold in the R2 - women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 on day one.

South Korea topped the Paris 2024 medal standings. Brazil, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Japan were among the nations to pick their first-ever podium in the sport as 22 National Paralympic Committees grabbed at least one medal compared to 17 at Tokyo 2020

Golden moment in Paris! 🇫🇷✨

After six Games, Tanguy De La Forest achieved his long-awaited Paralympic gold on home soil🥇

💬 "Like a good wine, with a lot of years, it gets better – and for me, this gold medal is the same, I think." 🍷@Paralympics @Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/Qtuf78nauq

— Shooting Para Sport (@ShootingPara) October 23, 2024

Granada 2024 European Championships

Leading up to the Paralympics, the 2024 Granada European Championships in Spain played a pivotal role in shaping the qualification picture. The competition saw top athletes from across Europe fighting for their places on the podium and securing spots for Paris. 

Poland topped the Granada 2024 medal table in the rifle and pistol events with six golds and 11 medals in total, only just ahead of Ukraine on five golds with a total of 15 medals. Serbia found themselves back in third place, having collected four golds and nine medals in total.

Marek Dobrowolski helped Poland leapfrog Ukraine on the leaderboard with a spectacular gold medal in the R7 - men’s 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 on the closing day.

Granada 2024 Para Trap Worlds

At the same time, the 2024 Para Trap World Championships in Granada provided some historic moments. Spain’s Pedro Gomez Albendea delivered the host nation’s first-ever Para Trap world title in the PT1 - mixed trap seated SG-S. 

There was also a first-ever gold for Slovakia’s Filip Marinov in the PT2 - mixed trap standing SG-L. Italy’s Gabriele Nanni won the PT3 - mixed trap standing SG-U gold.

📁 Memories from #Granada2024 🇪🇸#ShootingParaSport @ParaSport pic.twitter.com/6ZdyRSpLPR

— Shooting Para Sport (@ShootingPara) June 14, 2024

New Delhi 2024 World Cup

Indian capital New Delhi hosted its first-ever World Shooting Para Sport competition in 2024, marking a historic moment for the sport in the country.

The event held at the Dr. Karni Singh shooting ranges saw China finish on the top with 17 medals, including 11 golds, followed by Italy with three gold and hosts India with two gold medals. Seven new and equal world records were set. India’s Mona Agarwal made history with her victory in the R2 - women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 beating stars such as Slovakia’s Veronika Vadovicova, China’s Cuiping Zhang and India’s Lekhara. 

Changwon 2024 World Cup

The 2024 Changwon World Cup in South Korea was another milestone in the year with stars returning to the traditional shooting range. In rifle events, seasoned stars Vadovicova and Sweden's Annan Benson clinched at least one gold. The host nation topped the standings just like in Paris, as Jinho Park set a new world record in the R6 - mixed 50m rifle prone SH1. Park Seungwoo (R4 - mixed 10m air rifle standing SH2) and Jo Jeongdu (P4 - mixed 50m pistol SH1) were other shooters who gave gold to Korea. 

Changwon will also kick off the action in the 2025 World Cup season in May next year. More information about the 2025 competition calendar can be found here.